Turkey urges Germany to support its EU bid
ISTANBUL. March 31. KAZINFORM Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday urged Germany to extend support for Ankara's European Union membership bid.
The Turkish leader made the statement at a meeting of the Turkish-German Business Forum in Istanbul, which was also attended by German Chancellor Angela Merkel as part of her two-day visit.
Erdogan said his country considered Germany as "a natural ally, " adding that "We want to see Germany as the country which makes the biggest contribution and extends the biggest support for Turkey's EU membership."
Turkey was eager to form a strategic partnership with Germany and set up a council for high-level strategic cooperation, he said.
Along with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Merkel remains one of the staunchest opponents of Turkey's bid to join the European Union, arguing that a vast, relatively poor country with a mainly Muslim 71-million population has no place in Europe, Kazinform refers to Xinhuanet.
See www.xinhuanet.com